A-Z Challenge: U is for University of New Brunswick

This is A-Z. My theme is "All Things Grad School". The grad school I am going to is the University of New Brunswick which is perfect for my U post!

The University of New Brunswick (UNB) has campuses in both Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. I'll be attending the Fredericton campus since that is where the Department of English is housed. There's a decent chance I'll visit the Saint John campus from time-to-time, but "home" will be UNB Fredericton.

Seriously, who wouldn't want to go to a school where the campus looks like this?

UNB was founded in 1785 making it the oldest public English-language university in Canada and one of the oldest universities in North America. It's average class size is 31 students and my guess is that my Master's level classes will be below that average. Small class size means more one-on-one time with professors and if there is one thing a good student wants, it's a lot of one-on-one time with professors.

I've never been to Fredericton. The furthest east in Canada I have been is Gatineau, Quebec (that's not very far east at all). Most importantly, though, is the fact that I cannot wait!

You're welcome to come and visit me; I'll leave the invitation open. You'll find me in a back corner of the Harriet Irving Library buried under a stack of books!

A-Z Challenge: Q is for Qwerty

No, I didn't just type out the first six letters on the keyboard for my 'Q' post in the A-Z Blog Challenge. My theme is "All Things Grad School" since I am starting my Master of Arts in September and I am pretty darn excited! Qwerty is the University of New Brunswick's (that's where I am going) graduate student-run literary magazine. Pretty cool, right?!

Qwerty publishes innovative poetry, fiction, and visual art from emerging and established artists, has been around for 17 years, and has published 28 issues. Now that is exciting!

Taken directly from the Qwerty website: "We have no qualms with publishing genre fiction that subverts convention, experimental work that inverts tradition in pursuit of innovative storytelling, or images that play on the senses in unusual ways." Heck ya, count me in! They accept submissions from around the globe so if you'd like an opportunity to be published take a look at the guidelines and then submit away.

I'd really like to get involved with Qwerty's editorial team when I get to UNB, but at the very least I'll be sure to subscribe.

A-Z Challenge: O is for Options

Until a few hours ago, I couldn't think of a decent topic for an 'O' post to save my life. As I searched through the University of New Brunswick website for something, anything, that started with the 15th letter of the alphabet I had one of those light bulb moments and the word 'options' just popped into my head. Just as a refresher in case this is the first post of mine that you are visiting, my A-Z theme is "All Things Grad School", so O is for all of the options that I've had and still have to choose from while beginning this learning adventure.

Options 1: To go or not to go to grad school - I've always known I wanted to pursue a higher education. I aspire to be Dr. Brandy (the PhD kind, not the MD kind) someday. I just finished my undergrad honours degree and I am increasingly feeling under-stimulated at my job. Go to grad school.

Options 2: Which grad schools do I apply to - In Canada a lot of the English Master's programs require a certain knowledge of a second language. I speak, read, and write, English only, therefore, I am pretty limited in terms of where I can apply. I narrow it down to three based on the lack of a language requirement and my interest in the courses being offered in 2013-14. Apply to York University, University of Victoria, and University of New Brunswick. 

Options 3: When I get accepted into all three schools, which one do I choose - Ok, so yay me; I receive admission from all three schools, but now I'm faced with one of the most difficult decisions I've ever had to make. I have to decide which one of these schools offers the best program for me. I hum and I haw and I ask the opinions of a lot of people and inevitably go with the one my heart's been guiding me to all along. Accept UNB's offer. 

Options 4: Which courses do I register for - The UNB Master's in English has one mandatory course and requires that I choose six more. There are 10 classes total for me to choose from. I've picked four and still need to decide on two more. Register for "Medieval (Re-) Visions of Classical Antiquity", "Creative Writing: Prose", "Learning One's Letters: Education and Culture in Victorian Literature", and "African American Literature and the Sociology of Race".

Options 5: Separate course work and thesis or not- I can either complete all my course work in my first year and then dedicate my second year strictly to my thesis or I can work on both simultaneously throughout both years. I think I'd be a crazy person to work on courses and my own thesis at the same time. Do all required courses in Year 1 and spend Year 2 on only my thesis. 

Options 6: Where to live - There is a graduate student residence at UNB, but the area of Fredericton that surrounds the university is also almost completely residential and rentable to students. I'm not planning on taking any furniture with me so residence would seem like the most viable option, but I've heard that even though it's a grad student dorm, it's still quite noisy. Noise is not really my cup of tea so perhaps an apartment would be better. Then again, an apartment building might not be any less noisy and I'll likely be spending most of my time in the library anyway. I have no clue where I am going to live yet.

A-Z Challenge: H is for Hill

Day 8 of A-Z is brought to you by the letter 'H'.

For me and my "All Things Grad School" theme, H is for Hill, more specifically the one massive hill that the University of New Brunswick (UNB) in Fredericton, New Brunswick (where I will be spending 20 months come September working on my MA) is right smack dab in the middle of. The picture below is a panoramic view of the campus.

The area of the city where the campuses of UNB and St. Thomas University are located is actually referred to as "The Hill".

While I haven't been to Fredericton yet, the way I understand the city's basic layout is as follows:

• The bottom of The Hill hosts Fredericton's downtown core, home to all of the lovely features I mentioned in F is for Fredericton, art galleries, museums, theatres (for plays, not films), the legislative buildings, and much more. I anticipate spending a lot of time at the bottom of The Hill.
• The top of The Hill hosts Fredericton's uptown, home to shopping malls and numerous other big box retail outlets. I doubt I will spend much time at the top of The Hill.

Close to Fredericton's downtown is Odell Park which borders the Fredericton Botanic Gardens. The hilly geography of the park makes it ideal for hiking, jogging, and cross-country skiing. Despite the fact that I will realistically be spending nearly all of my time inside buried under metaphorical hills of books, I do plan to get outside and enjoy the real thing from time to time. 

A lot of UNB Fredericton's majestic beauty is attributed to it's location on The Hill and I can't wait to call The Hill, home.